Archive for the ‘Redline Motorsports’ tag

On paper, it’s the biggest mismatch since Mike Tyson versus Marvis Frazier. In one corner, the 2012 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 with 580hp and 556-lbs.ft. of torque. In the other, the 2013 Shelby GT500 rated at 662hp and 631-lbs.ft. of torque.

Some of the new car magazines have gone to great lengths to show that the ZL1 can move and that it’s not just a punching bag dangling there ready to take Carroll Shelby’s last haymaker. But one real-world dyno test has shown that the disadvantage is actually worse than it seems: The GT500 has a nearly 100hp, not 80hp, advantage over the ZL1… at the rear wheels.

TKO?

Luckily the ZR1 has in its corner late-model GM tuner Howard Tanner of Redline Motorsports. Tanner has developed two packages that should let the ZR1 go rounds against even tweaked GT500s.

Redline’s “base” ZLR package for the ZL1 is worth 725hp (available in stick or six-speed auto) plus it includes

ZLR wheels matched to the car

Custom carbon fiber ground effect front, side and rear skirting

Color matched factory Brembo brakes

Interior trim enhancements and

Special ZLR graphics scheme and badges.

Redline is claiming 10.90s at 124 MPH or 10.50s at 128 MPH, with an automatic transmission using an “upgraded” torque converter.

The 427-powered Super Coupe will reportedly cover the quarter mile in 10.20 at 140 MPH.

For more information, visit Redline-Motorsports.net or call 954-703-5560. Redline, formerly of Schenectady, New York, has moved its base of operations to Deerfield Beach, Florida, and has teamed up with Tropical Chevrolet in Miami Shores.

Joel Rosen, he of Baldwin-Motion fame, took delivery of the first of the new Motion Camaros that bear his name last weekend in Florida, the car’s builder, Howard Tanner of Redline Motorsports in Schenectady, New York, told us.

The car is a Motion Phase III 427 SC rated at 800hp, courtesy of a supercharged and modified LS7 engine. It also sports every chassis modification offered on the new line of Motion Camaros.

The Synergy Green and gold paint scheme was selected by Rosen for the car. The base green is a factory Camaro color, and the stripes were applied at Caprara’s Auto Body Shop in Troy, New York, near Hemmings HQ.

The car was on display during a Chevy-specific event at Palm Beach International Raceway in Florida last weekend, and Tanner said it drew a lot of attention and nice comments. “People were going nuts,” he said. “We ran into a lot of Motion enthusiasts and they appreciated it too.”

Tanner said that Rosen was also enthusiastic about the car and has asked for a second Motion Camaro – a more mellow convertible, in yellow with an automatic transmission.

We’ve written extensively about the tuned up fifth-generation Camaros built by Schenectady, New York–based Redline Motorsports and sold by DeNooyer Performance of Albany, New York, over the past couple of years because, viewed from a historical perspective, they’re the second coming of the Baldwin Motion and Yenko Camaros that today are performance legends.

Now the connection between DeNooyer/Redline and Baldwin/Motion is more than just spiritual. Howard Tanner at Redline will be building brand-spanking new Motion Camaros licensed by Joel Rosen, and the cars will be sold by Dan Carlton of DeNooyer Chevrolet’s DeNooyer Performance Division.

There will be five versions of the 2011 Baldwin-Motion Camaros offered, ranging from 525hp to 800hp, and the cars will carry a warranty ranging from three years/36,000 miles for the base Motion SS-427 Camaro, down to one year and 12,000 miles for the 800hp Motion Phase III 427-SC Camaro Supercar. Pricing will start north of $70,000, and range up to $150,000 for the top-of-the-line car.

The lineup has been dubbed the 2011 Baldwin-Motion Fantastic Five and will include the following (Note: This is just a summary of the models, for the complete list of specs go to www.officialbaldwinmotion.com, which we’re told will be updated with complete information by the time you read this.)

5.) The 800hp Motion Phase III 427-SC Camaro Supercar — When too much isn’t enough, you can opt for the baddest of the new Motion lineup. This is essentially powered by a supercharged LS7 427, though the engine has to be reworked to handle the boost from the supercharger. It too gets CNC ported heads, a custom ground camshaft, the intake and exhaust treatment as well as a whole host of suspension mods: Pfadt billet rear cradle mounts, Pfadt differential bushings, Pfadt trailing arms and tie rods, Pfadt coil-overs front and rear, Pfadt swaybars, Brembo six-piston front and Brembo four-piston rear brakes. This car will ride on custom Motion wheels plus get the full-on exterior graphics and badging and interior treatment.

Most recently, the upstate New York Chevrolet dealer/performance tuner landed one of their cars on the cover of the GM Performance Parts Catalog and were invited by Dr. Jamie Meyer of GM Performance Parts to display the car at the GMPP booth at the Performance Racing Industry show in Orlando, Florida, earlier this month.

This car, dubbed the HTR-SS454, uses GM’s new LSX454 crate engine with fuel injection, headers, a cold air intake and Borla mufflers to make 515hp and 513-lbs.ft. of torque at the rear wheels – the engine is rated at 620hp at the crank. Behind the 454 is a Corvette ZR1 Dual Disc clutch and a Tremec TR6060 six-speed, stirred by an MGW shifter. To keep the car planted, Howard also installed Pfadt coil overs and bushings with Driveline Shop 1,000hp axles.

Keep your eyes on these guys. They’re hungry and after starting from scratch about two years ago, they are aggressively trying to become the country’s leading GM performance dealer/tuner in the tradition of Baldwin Motion or Yenko.

To get your copy of the latest GM Performance Parts Catalog head over to the GMPP web site. It’s free to download or you can order a printed copy from a participating dealer.

Howard Tanner of Redline Motosports with the Mother’s Choice Award for Excellence in Automotive Design

Hemmings’ nearby neighbors Redline Motorsports and the DeNooyer Performance Division scored a Mothers Choice Award for Excellence in Automotive Design at the 2010 SEMA show last week, with their no-holds-barred 2011 HTR-850R Camaro.

The 850R is the latest FrankenCamaro creation from Howard Tanner, the Schenectady, New York, tuner who teamed up several months ago with Albany, New York, Chevrolet dealer DeNooyer Chevrolet to create and sell what basically amount to modern versions of the Baldwin-Motion or Yenko Camaros.

The cars have been successful because they are meticulously assembled (Howard is a raving maniac about details), offered at a reasonable price and, best of all, backed by a warranty. If that wasn’t enough, Dan Carlton at DeNooyer Performance will even take in your crappy old trade on your new Tanner-tuned Camaro (or Corvette) and get you financed.

The 850R that picked up the Mothers award in Vegas started out as a 2011 SS2/RS Camaro, but Howard has basically thrown everything at it.

The original engine was swapped for an LS7 that’s been heavily modified: Callies forged crank, Oliver forged rods, JE pistons, CNC ported L92 heads, and a specially ground blower cam. With 9.5:1 compression, the engine was then topped with a 3.6-liter Kenne Bell liquid cooled twin screw blower. The trans is an RPM Transmission-built TR6060 six-speed with hardened input and output shafts and carbon fiber synchros. The car also uses a ZR1 twin disk clutch and 1,400hp Driveline Shop Axles.

The suspension is likewise heavily worked, with Pfadt coilovers, anti-roll bars, trailing arms and bushings. The 850R rolls on Forza Forged FRZ-950 three-piece wheels: 20×11 in the rear and 20×10 in the front. Stopping power is provided by Brembo six-piston front, four-piston rear.

The 850 has also received a host of body and interior mods, as well as painted on stripes – all of that work was done by another Hemmings neighbor, Capara’s Autobody in Troy, New York.

Performance? Howard is claiming 816hp at the wheels and a 10.30 quarter at 139 MPH. He says the car will pull 1.08gs on the skidpad and still get 18 MPG.

Unfortunately, the car’s right rear tire picked up a nail en route to the famed MOTSLOPD (pronounced: “Cops? What Cops?”), a.k.a., McNessor’s Official Top Secret Location O’ Photos and Driving.

However, because the ‘Vette rolls on P325/30ZR19 Eagle F1 Supercar run-flat tires, Howard and Dan kept motoring and proceeded to let me and Terry McGean drive the car anyway. A little more about those shenanigans in a moment, but first some background….

The car was also ordered with a $750 removable roof panel; $395 Competition Gray aluminum wheels; $695 optional two-tone seats, a $1,750 Nav system, and a $410 full-width spoiler, plus custom stripes, applied by DeNooyer, for a grand total of around $64,000.

Then Howard put the GS on a muscle-building program. To the stock 430hp LS3 he added: an Edelbrock E-Force blower; a new cam with more lift and duration than stock but with a wide lobe separation to take advantage of the supercharger’s boost; heavy valve springs; chromemoly pushrods; titanium retainers and heavy-duty keepers; a set of Borla stainless mufflers and an MGW short-throw shifter.

The result is…640hp at the crank and 566hp at the rear wheels.

Howard says he likes the new Edelbrock blower because it packs a bigger low-end punch than the Eaton unit used on the ZR1, yet it looks like something that would’ve been installed at the factory.

“Edelbrock has incorportated 13-14-inch-long runners that extend the length of the intake port. This unit has a lot more throttle response and power down low than the 2300 blower on the ZR1 because that blower is top mounted with no runners,” he said. “What I really like about it is that the fittings are all factory-style connections and, for us to build a car and put a warranty behind it, we need to know that we’ve got a product that’s not going to break.”

As with all of the DeNooyer Performance/Redline beasts, the GS is sold with a 3 year/36,000-mile warranty. They also take trades at their new Central Avenue, Albany, New York- based dealership and will finance any of their machines.

Now a word about the car’s performance. You’re thinking (like I was) yes, the warranty on a tuned-up car is very cool but uh…big deal, it’s a Corvette with a bolt-on supercharger and a cam.

It’s surprising, though, how hard this thing hits from its lopey idle up to as high as you dare spin the engine while driving on a runflat with a nail in it. I haven’t been in a ZR1 (yet) but the CTS-V and the Shelby GT500 seem mild on the low end. I suspect this is by design, to prevent unintentional burnouts and donuts at every traffic light.

The HTR-GS640/SC has gobs of power everywhere in the RPM range and the blower goes about its business without a lot of whining. The Borlas, however, are quick to speak up under heavy throttle. The MGW shifter is also an impressive piece of hardware. Honestly, I hadn’t heard of this stick, but it’s built like the Pentagon spec’ed it and practically snaps itself into the next gear.

Okay, enough yammering already, how much does all of this tomfoolery cost?

At $82,000 the HTR-GS640/SC ain’t cheap but with ZR1-like power and the production Grand Sport’s Z06 chassis pieces, plus the option of a removable top (unavailable in a Z06), it’s a lot of track-day weaponry for the money.

Question: So what do you do with a couple of tuned-up 2010 Camaros on a fall afternoon in upstate New York? Answer: Attract a lot of attention to yourself (or yourselves) and burn about 25,000 miles off of some very expensive 305/35/ZR20 rear tires.

You might remember our post a couple months back about the fledgling DeNooyer Performance/Redline Motorsports effort that produced the thundering 600hp HTR Camaros. The cars are 2010 SS Camaros, with warmed up LS7 crate engines â€“ the powerplant in the new Z06 â€™Vette â€“ reworked, tuned up and transplanted by Howard Tanner and his crew at Redline Motorsports in Schenectady, New York. These modern day super muscle cars are then sold as new by DeNooyer Performance, a division of DeNooyer Chevrolet in Colonie, New York, complete with a warranty.

Well, as promised when we spoke with him last summer, Tanner is cranking up the heat even higher and is now offering the HTR750, an LS7 powered Camaro topped with a Magnuson TVS 2300 supercharger. The package is worth between 725-750hp and seems to have been engineered solely for the purpose of slaughtering helpless street tires. Seriously, tip into the HTR750â€™s throttle on a nice clear stretch of blacktop and the seat-of-the pants sensation is similar to driving on wet or icy pavement.

With some of GMâ€™s factory performance programs on the back burner, a Chevrolet dealer and a performance tuning shop in upstate New York have taken it upon themselves to turn up the heat.

DeNooyer Chevrolet in Albany, N.Y. and Redline Motorsports in nearby Schenectady have joined forces to build what muscle car enthusiasts might call the modern interpretation of the Baldwin-Motion SS 427 Camaros â€”Â but these fuel-injected, emissions-friendly street, strip and track-day terrors are pumping out in the neighborhood of 600hp and plans are in the works for even larger power gains using turbochargers and superchargers.

Though a number of different engine and suspension packages are in the works and on the drawing board, the car that intrigued us most was the HTR 600, because of its nostalgic nod to the Motion cars, its muscle car manners and its ability to make tire shredding horsepower without power adders.

Starting with a 2010 Camaro SS, Howard Tanner of Redline Motorsports (HTR stands for Howard Tanner Redline) yanks the original 426hp 6.2-liter V-8 and transplants a new LS7 427 crate engine, the 505hp engine currently offered in the Z06 Corvette.

The dry-sump oil system, native to the LS7 in the Z06, is reconfigured into a conventional system, and a custom-ground roller lifter cam is slipped in. Custom stainless headers, a 3-inch stainless exhaust with an X-pipe, high-flow cats and GM Performance mufflers are added as is a cold-air intake and special PCM calibrating. The whole package conspires to pump out an honest 600hp in the HTR 600.

The Camaro we drove also sported some Rally stripes and old-school 427 badges and retailed in the neighborhood of $65,000. Pricey yes, but when you consider that an SS starts at $30,995 (good luck buying one for that) and the LS7 crate engine has a street price of $13,643, the price becomes more palatable. Add in the cost of Tannerâ€™s upgrades and labor plus the 3 year/36,000 mile powertrain warranty that DeNooyer is offering on the car (if you performed this swap youâ€™d have a 0-year/0-mile warranty) and it suddenly starts to look like a bargain.

The cars are all numbered and badged for future collectibility â€” which seems almost inevitable given the current climate for factory performance. Look for more in the November issue of Hemmings Muscle Machinesâ€™ Production Line column.

To order yours or buy the one we drove, call Dan Carlton at DeNooyer Performance at (518) 526-0412 or send him an email at topgun1ice@aol.com.